The Band - Get Up Jake

In 1973, The Band put out Moondog Matinee.  The album consisted solely of cover versions of songs from the '50's.   

A single was released of Ain't Got No Home.  

What's interesting here is the B-Side.  A Robertson original entitled Get Up Jake.  A live version of this appeared on Rock of Ages.  Even though it says this version is from that album, it's not.  What we get is a studio take recorded during the sessions for their classic 2nd album  (officially self titled, but known to fans as the brown one).

Get Up Jake features a verse taken by each of the three singing members.  Levon Helm takes the first one, Rick Danko takes the second and Richard Manuel takes the third.  On the studio version, there are no instrumental breaks.  The live version on Rock of Ages is expanded slightly to include a guitar solo by Robbie Robertson and an organ solo by Garth Hudson.  On that version, which is around three minutes long, each member of The Band gets a spotlight for about 20 seconds apiece.   It's a good introduction to all the members for those who aren't familiar.

Brontosaurus

I love dinosaurs.  Always have.  I love surfer stomp music.  I love old 45's.   Why on Earth would I ever pass up something like this in the cheapo bin.

Even though I had never heard this record, I imagined how this would sound.   Surf music with loud tympani representing the Brontosaurus.  It functioned just as advertised.

And yes, I say Brontosaurus and not one of those newfangled names for large sauropods.  When I was a kid, there were only a few dinosaurs.  Now there are hundreds to choose from.  Just like soft drinks.   Life was simpler when we had freedom from choice.  That's why I like Costco. 

Chicago Record Shopping Adventure

Recently had a business trip to the windy city.  Late afternoon flight on Saturday left me with plenty of time to record shop.

First stop, the annual CHIRP record fair.  Held in a union hall.  Lots of bargains and not so much bargains.  The place reeked of stale cardboard.  I love that smell almost as much as new vinyl.

After that, I had Uberman take me to hipster Wicker Park


Recklesss Records - Chicago

According to the Record Store Day store locator, Reckless Records was located on Milwaukee.    Well they won't be at that location for a few days.  Their old location, which closed the day after I visited,  was up the block.  The new location will be much larger.  They have a few locations around town including one in The Loop.

Shuga Records


Then there was Shuga.  Hadn't heard of this one.  Nice vibe and selection.  Turntables for sale as well.  They have the old neon from Record Surplus - a store that used to be nearby.

Dusty Groove


Also hit up the new kid on the block, Dusty Groove.  Nice vibe, but they tend to specialize in Jazz and Hip Hop.  Not my cup of meat.

The Wicker Park neighborhood has a lot going on.  I popped into a vintage audio shop because they had my first stereo in the window.  A Panasonic job that came with speakers and a turntable.  I mentioned to them that the speakers were not the originals.  They knew.  I was tempted to buy a tube amp, but had no way of stuffing it in my suitcase.

Had me a stack of records and stopped for lunch to go through them.  Wicker Park has many fine eateries.

Then had Uber Man take me back to the hotel for a suitcase packing engineering exercise.  Heavy bags on the Blue Line to O'Hare.

I Love Twist Records

I came across this one in a thrift store.  I know Irving Fields from his Bagels and Bongos records.   The cover caught my eye.  A silhouette of a 'twister' with an hourglass figure - except it kind of looks like time ran out.  

I did a little research on this and found out that it's quite collectible. Everest records was started by Harry Belock - an inventor.  They pioneered the use of recording on 35MM magnetic film.  Early recordings on this label from prior to the sale to Mercury (along with the technology) are supposedly as good as it got at the time.

Happy 4th of July

You can't get more 'American' than John Wayne.  For some reason, he made a record. It dominated the cutout bins for a long time in the late '70's.

So when you're grilling hot dogs, drinking beer and watching the carnage of war depicted with pretty fireworks  - think of that great American.  He never served in the military, but criticized others who avoided service.  He was never a cowboy, but played one in the movies. He was a mouthpiece for conservative causes.   He detested hippies.  In a nutshell, he represented the conservative establishment that the '60's tried to overturn.  

John Wayne  - America, Why I Love Her  (RCA 1973)

Just for fun, here's an excerpt.

Sibling Squable over Paul Revere

Paul Revere and the Raiders were a much better band than those silly costumes would indicate.  They were the first rock band signed to Columbia Records.  Their marketing set them up as the 'anti-British.'  Even more silly than the Beatles vs.The Stones.  Whatever - they made some great records.

Paul Revere and the Raiders - The Spirit of '67 (Columbia 1967)

IMO, this is their best record.  

Looks like the Winokour sisters both liked this record a lot.  Gayle Winokour put her name on it.  Sometime later, sister Debbie laid claim on it, crossed out Gayle's name and replaced it with her own. Once Gayle saw this on her record, she crossed out Debbie's name and rightly returned the album to its original owner.  All this squabbling was probably more over territory than it was about the record.  The vinyl looks like its rarely been played.

I got this at Dave's Records in Chicago - Not to be confused with Dave's Records in Berkeley.

Dave's Records

This Has Little To Do With Records, but.....

Originally posted 6/27/2015

This is where yours truly is this weekend.    Grateful Dead final shows.    Last night we were gifted with a rainbow at the end of the first set.

We got us a Dark Star, St Stephen, The Eleven, The Other One.   We'll see what happens tonight.